In many cases, telecommunication terminal devices connected to a private branch exchange of a communication system are controlled and monitored from a computer. For this purpose, suitable interfaces between, on the one hand, private branch exchanges and telecommunication terminal devices and, on the other hand, private branch exchanges and computer devices are already defined. It is standard practice that private branch exchanges are controlled separately via a CTI (Computer Telephone Integration) link, using the CSTA (Computer Supported Telephone Application) protocol. However, such control possibilities are not available for a plurality of applications simultaneously.
Comparable control possibilities also exist in newer multimedia terminal devices that are coupled to long-distance networks, for example Intranet or Internet. Multimedia terminal devices belonging to a defined set (domain) can be controlled and monitored by a suitable computer. However, up to now a separate control unit has had to be implemented in multimedia devices for each type of application.
Up to now there have existed no integrated solutions permitting a common controlling and monitoring both of terminal devices connected to private branch exchanges and also of terminal devices coupled to long-distance networks. Due to the increasing importance of the transmission of time-critical data, particularly speech data and multimedia data, using TCP/IP, in heterogeneous communication networks the need has arisen for control and monitoring possibilities of this sort for telecommunication terminal devices.
It is an object of the invention to create a system that permits the controlling and monitoring of telecommunication terminal devices connected to private branch exchanges of communication system or of telecommunication terminal devices coupled to long-distance networks.
According to the system and method of the invention for controlling and monitoring first telecommunication terminal devices connected to private branch exchanges or second communication terminal devices coupled to long-distance networks, at least one application-related conversion unit is provided for protocol conversion of data supplied by application programs to a uniform system-internal data format. At least one control information router has a first reception unit for receiving commands from an application-related conversion unit as well as the forwarding thereof via a protocol conversion unit to terminal devices logically allocated to one another and that form a domain, and a second reception unit for receiving messages from a domain as well as the forwarding thereof via a protocol conversion unit to an application-related conversion unit. The protocol conversion units are provided for conversion of the uniform system-internal data format to domain-specific communication protocols. First ones of the protocol conversion units are coupled to private branch exchanges. Second ones of the protocol conversion units are coupled to long-distance networks. The second protocol conversion units comprise a protocol setup unit for supplementing structural items of additional information in the system-internal data format, a coupling unit to a central monitoring and connection signaling unit of a domain inside a long-distance network, and a management unit for acquisition of registered terminal devices of long-distance networks.
The inventive solution ensures a plurality of networks to the extent that a plurality of private branch exchanges and a plurality of domains can be controlled simultaneously within one long-distance network.
An advantage of the inventive solution is that applications running on a computer can use a variety of application programming interfaces for controlling and monitoring. The controlling and monitoring functions are thereby simultaneously available for a variety of applications. The basis for this is the introduction of a uniform system-internal data format, to the model of which the various application programming interfaces are adapted. Moreover, the applications can access various network types in a uniform fashion. This is achieved by adapting the various domain-specific protocols (e.g. ACL, CSTA, H.323) to the system-internal data format. Using the control information router, an access to telecommunication terminal devices that overlaps network boundaries is enabled.
In a preferred construction, the protocol conversion means additionally include controllers unit that are provided as a security feature for the monitoring of user-specific authorizations for the execution of control commands and monitoring commands.
The uniform system-internal data format is preferably based on the CSTA-III protocol. In addition, the first protocol conversion units are provided with converters to the ACL protocol or to the CSTA protocol, while the second protocol conversion units preferably comprise converters to the H.323 protocol. In some cases of application, it is advantageous to carry out a conversion to an ATM protocol instead of the H.323 protocol.
The telecommunication terminal devices coupled to long-distance networks are preferably based on computers. This enables the controlling and monitoring of multimedia terminal devices via wide area networks, Intranet, or via the Internet. A relief of the burden on the instances of the adaptation layer can be achieved if the telecommunication terminal devices coupled to long-distance networks are provided with their own application-related conversion means. Similarly, a relief of the burden on the network layer can be realized by equipping telecommunication terminal devices coupled to long-distance networks with their own control information routers. This offers decisive advantages particularly in the transmission of time-critical data, in particular multimedia data.
Converters of the uniform system-internal data format to the H.323 protocol are preferably arranged in a separate terminal device control unit. This terminal device control unit comprises an additional signaling auxiliary unit that controls the flow of data from and to the telecommunication terminal device. The advantage of such a design is particularly, in time-critical cases of application, in the relief of the allocated protocol conversion unit. Moreover, in this context it is useful that the second protocol conversion unit comprise for its part an additional unit for controlling the data connection to the terminal device control units.
A particularly efficient forwarding of information can be achieved by equipping the control information routers with a registration unit for the application-related conversion unit and with a registration unit for the protocol conversion unit. In this way, communication with remote entities on the network layer is accelerated, and the localization of suitable protocol conversion unit is simplified.